1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image sensing apparatus, an image sensing method, an image sensing program, a recording apparatus, a recording method, and a recording program that allow both image signals of objects shot by a video camera and operation information thereof to be recorded.
2. Description of the Background Art
Image signals of objects shot by a video camera are recorded to a recording medium such as a video tape, a disc shaped recording medium, or a semiconductor memory. Thereafter, when necessary, the recorded image signals are edited and used. In brief, the editing operation is performed such that while the user is watching images reproduced as image signals from the recording medium, he or she extracts desired cuts and marks a start point, referred to as an in-point, and an end point, referred to as an out-point, each of the extracted cuts. Corresponding to the marked in-points and out-points, the user connects a plurality of cuts in his or her desired manner and records the connected images to for example another recording medium. As a result, so-called complete package images that are final images are obtained.
The user may need to extract his or her desired cuts, while he or she is watching images. Thus, to create perfect package images, the user may need to extract one or several cuts from many images. Thus, the user may have to reproduce many images, spending a long time.
To solve such a problem, a system that extracts feature points from images, searches images for the feature points, and extracts desired cuts has been proposed. As feature points, change points of operation states of the video camera can be used. When operation states of the video camera, for example diaphragm, zoom, focus, white balance, amplifier gain, and shutter speed have changed, the object or the shooting environment likely changed or the user likely intentionally operated the video camera. Thus, these change points can be used as feature points of images.
In particular, it is thought that a change point of an auto tracking white balance (ATW) that causes a white balance control to automatically follow a surrounding color temperature corresponds to a large change of a shooting environment such as a shooting location change from outdoor to indoor (or from indoor to outdoor), from room to room (e.g., from a room with an incandescent lamp to a room with a fluorescent lamp). Thus, change points of the auto tracking white balance are very effective to extract cuts.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 9-198849 describes a structure of a video camera that obtains changes of its operation states when it shoots objects and records the obtained changes as camera operation information together with image signals to a recording medium. According to JP 9-198849, when the user shoots objects, the video camera obtains camera operation information and records the information together with image signals to a recording medium frame by frame. When the user edits images, he or she searches for them corresponding to the camera operation information frame by frame. With the structure described in JP 9-198849, the user can quickly search his or her desired scenes corresponding to the camera operation states.